If you are a smoker, you have most likely been told, time and time again, by those around you that you should quit. It can be very difficult, if not impossible, to quit smoking on the premise that you are doing it for anyone other than yourself. The great news is, that if you have found this article, you are already thinking about quitting and are taking the steps to shake your habit.

Rather than using the typical scare tactics that fly straight over the head of someone with nicotine on the brain, this article will outline a few benefits of quitting as well as some effective ways to quit.

Everyone learns differently, so if medical facts are indeed important to your learning style, please make sure you know your smoking facts before diving into these tips, so you can have a well-rounded view on what smoking is proved to do to the human body.

Positivity and Self-Accountability are two huge factors in your journey to a smoke free future.

Positivity

Instead of focusing on all of the ways that smoking has negatively impacted your life and health, try looking forward to all of the great things to come! This will make the admittedly difficult task at hand, much less daunting.

A great way to begin, is to start a list of wins that apply to your own life. Not everyone wants to quit smoking so they can run a marathon, and that is ok! Once you start breaking everything down into little wins, you can bask in the glory of enjoying things that are important to YOU.

Here are some examples to get you started

1. My hair will smell good
2. Food will taste better
3. I will have an extra $80 a month!
4. I will cough less

Keep adding to your list as you notice good things that are happening in your life and to your mind/body, and remember that they are happening because YOU are making them   happen.

Self-Accountability

Because quitting smoking has to be your own idea, the accountability piece should come from yourself as well. If you can draw your own boundaries, accept your mistakes along the way, and continue to be your biggest cheerleader; quitting will begin to feel like winning, rather than giving something up. Know yourself, and how you best operate, so that you can give yourself the best chance possible at succeeding in your journey.

To shed some light, about 90% of people try the Cold Turkey method of quitting (suddenly stopping, no outside help, no nicotine replacers). Of those 90% who try to quit smoking Cold Turkey, only about 5-7% succeed.

Many people would benefit from things like behavioral therapy, nicotine replacement therapy, medications, or a combination of those methods. Cold Turkey may be the most obvious place to start, but it is also the most extreme and leaves the least amount of room for creativity when it comes to customizing your goals for your personal needs.

Just because it is the most popular method, does not mean it is the right one for you.

The best way to begin is to set yourself a short term goal, and hold yourself accountable for it in some way. Positive reinforcements like using the money you save on cigarettes each week to treat yourself to your favorite meal or activity are great ways to be accountable without losing your positivity. And keeping your goals small, fresh and attainable will keep you on your toes so you do not start to become complacent and begin to slip.

Just like any habit, smoking is not something you can stop overnight, but it is certainly possible to quit more effectively if you give yourself the right opportunity to flourish and succeed. With your new positive outlook and list of things to get excited about, your confidence and ability to monitor yourself will surely help you kick your habit once and for all.